Zuckerberg denies Facebook role in Trump victory

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has come out in defence of his company after allegations that the social network contributed to the rise of Donald Trump.

Data produced by various critics highlighted that a vast number of fake news stories were being shared via the site with a lack of follow-up stories to negate the fabricated claims.

Zuckerberg was speaking at a technology conference in California known as Techonomy, rubbishing claims that Facebook had aided Trump's victory over Hillary Clinton on Thursday.

"The idea that fake news on Facebook influenced the election in any way is a pretty crazy idea," he said.

"If you believe that then I don't think you have internalised the message Trump supporters are trying to send in this election," Zuckerberg added.

Many commentators have asserted that Facebook is having a growing influence on the outcome of political campaigning, as a high percentage of those in the developed world gather their news via the social network.

Zuckerberg also rejected the idea of the "filter bubble", where users' online environments are so tailored towards their personal preferences that opposing views no longer appear.

"Even if 90% of your friends are Democrats, probably 10% are Republicans. Even if you live in some state or country you will know some people in another state, another country."

"Our job, our goal is to help people see the content that's going to be the most meaningful and interesting to them," he added.